Gujarat election: Voting begins for 89 seats in the first phase

Voting for the first phase of the crucial Gujarat assembly polls began today on 89 seats of Saurashtra and South Gujarat regions. After a campaign that often turned vituperative, around 2.12 crore voters would be exercising their franchise in Modi's home state to choose between the ruling BJP and the Congress. A total of 977 candidates are in fray for the first phase polls. Prominent candidates for today's battle include Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, who is contesting from Rajkot (West), and Congress' Shaktisinh Gohil (Mandvi) and Paresh Dhanani (Amreli).